Hey, I'm looking to try and start shaping my own board. I see there are kits online from foam ez, greenlight, and other shaping supply stores. Is there a list anywhere on the internet on what you'll need? are some of these tools better purchased from non surf shaper suppliers like the hardware store, craigslist, etc? I'm wondering if I can piece the kit together myself for the same price or less with better quality tools. Thanks for any input, I appreciate it.

for a first time build i'd suggest surfsteve.com, he covers a lot. some of it is brilliant and other parts i didn't use (for better or worse?)

He lists a lot of the tools, he's also got a video on youtube which is about an hour long, helped me a lot as seeing stuff made much more sense.

i'll add in my own experiences of what tools i used (or lack of them). I wanted to do it by hand so it may differ to you. I used a hand planer (made for wood working i think), a block planner to take the stringer down (it was dull and would chore into the foam...but actually worked fine for me.) and 80 and maybe 50 grit sandpaper (i'm not too sure ha.) and a ruler with a detachable right angle spirit level (hard to explain, but i used it to measure the thickness). Basically that is it. All these tools were available to me and had to just improvise with what i had, makes it more enjoyable to me, get to be more creative ha, and i wasn't aiming for the perfect board...

hope some of this helps...

i should do my hot coat soon! its been sitting there doing nothing for a month.

saw this on a web site and thought it might be of some value (quite comprehensive but better to overkill )There is no one “perfect” list of tools, just like there is no one “perfect” way to build a surfboard. That being said, the following is a list of tools that you need to maximize your chances of getting a good end result.

These shaping tools can be used for both EPS and Polyurethane foam:

Shaping Tools

· Power Planer (optional, not recommended for your first shape)

· Shaping Weight (a small brick with a clean towel or foam wrapped/taped around it will do fine)

Thinking about a power planer; I will only be making a few boards, not pro. Looking to get a power planer, have been reading lots etc. However, what would you say is the max. cut depth you would look for when choosing a planer. Bearing in mind, my budget will be less than £50 new or second hand. Any recommendations?

WeAreMemories wrote:Thinking about a power planer; I will only be making a few boards, not pro. Looking to get a power planer, have been reading lots etc. However, what would you say is the max. cut depth you would look for when choosing a planer. Bearing in mind, my budget will be less than £50 new or second hand. Any recommendations?

The cheapest planer will do a good enough job on a home build IMHO. You can adjust it to cut a very small amount at a time.

WeAreMemories wrote:Thinking about a power planer; I will only be making a few boards, not pro. Looking to get a power planer, have been reading lots etc. However, what would you say is the max. cut depth you would look for when choosing a planer. Bearing in mind, my budget will be less than £50 new or second hand. Any recommendations?

The cheapest planer will do a good enough job on a home build IMHO. You can adjust it to cut a very small amount at a time.